How Did We Get Our Bibles?

Can We Cound On The Bible?

The Canon of the Bible (2) Why the Apocrypha Does NOT Belong in the Bible

We are in the midst of a study dealing with the integrity of our Bible. Our goal in this study is to verify that the Bible we have IS the Word of God as He intended for us to have it. We are seeking to answer questions and challenges related to which books should actually be recognized as God’s word and why others should be rejected. We are also interested in explaining how we can know that our Bibles, in the English language (and other languages) are accurate even though we do not possess the original “autographs”.

Thus far we have noticed claims from both the Old and New Testaments that they claim to be inspired and thus they ought to be given serious consideration. If they are inspired (and I believe they are) then the message needs to be studied, applied and taught to others. In our last lesson we examined the Canon of the Old Testament and showed how the teachings of Jesus and the writers of the New Testament respected the 39 books we have as the word of God.

TODAY, we want to examine what is referred to as the Apocrypha and notice why it is NOT to be considered as the word of God or Canon (a word referring to those writings which make up the divine standard – i.e. inspired and preserved with the hand of God and therefore authoritative). Time permitting, we will also examine, how the books of the New Testament were chosen.

I. Respecting the Boundaries of Scripture

a. Both the Old Testament and New Testament set boundaries that were not to be stepped beyond.
i. Concerning the Old Testament they were instructed to not add to or take away from God’s message –
1. Deut 4:1-3, "Now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the judgments which I teach you to observe, that you may live, and go in and possess the land which the Lord God of your fathers is giving you. 2 You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.”
2. Deut 12:32 "Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it.
3. Prov. 30:5-6, “Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him. Do not add to His words, Lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar.”
ii. Concerning the New Testament we find the following:
1. Gal. 1:6-9, “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.
2. 1 Cor. 4:6-7, “Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively transferred to myself and Apollos for your sakes, that you may learn in us not to think beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up on behalf of one against the other.”
3. 2 John 9, “Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son.”
4. Rev. 22:18-19, “For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.“
iii. These verses are consistent with God’s expectations of His people. Scriptures record many who respected His boundaries and others who transgressed them and the resulting consequences.
b. Yet there are many who have produced works that they claim to be from God or that ought to be treated equal to the Word of God. Or man has produced works that OTHERS views as inspired and thus put them on equal standing with the Bible. Can we accept such and be pleasing to God?

II. The Apocrypha

a. What is the Apocrypha?
The word “apocrypha” actually means, “hidden”. The term has reference to books whose authorship, authenticity or origins are in question.
The Random House Dictionary gives the following definitions, “1. a group of 14 books, not considered canonical, included in the Septuagint and the Vulgate as part of the Old Testament, but usually omitted from Protestant editions of the Bible. 2. Various religious writings of uncertain origin regarded by some as inspired, but rejected by most authorities.”[1]
NOTE: The number (14) will vary depending on different sources and what one accepts as Canon.
While there are other apocryphal books (literally hundreds of them), our focus in this section is on those books found in some Bibles (The Catholic version called the New American Bible [NOT to be confused with the New American Standard Version] and the Revised Standard Version [RSV] and NRSV) which consists of 9 or so books or additions to books.
b. Facts about the apocrypha.
i. Sometimes called the deuterocanonical books or “the second canon.”
ii. It consists of works which were written during the intertestamental period (within 200 years of the coming of Christ) and some n the 2nd century AD.
Malachi, was written around 400 BC, so these works appear considerably later than the final writings.
iii. These books include: Tobit, Judith, Additions to Esther, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, Additions to Daniel (Prayer of Azariah, Susanna and Bell and the Dragon) & 1 and 2 Maccabees.
These books consist of some of the history of the Jews during the period of silence from 400 B.C. until the coming of Christ, some short sayings (like proverbs), stories about Biblical and extra-Bibilical characters, and some supposed symbolic prophecy.
iv. The apocrypha of Catholicism was not officially canonized by them until 1546 at the Council of Trent when a decree was issued that they were to be included as authoritative.
The Council of Trent was a series of 25 meetings held mostly in Trent (1545-1563) in which the Catholic Church met to address the reformation movement and its teachings.
An interesting observation about this council is that at the same time these apocryphal books were declared canon, CHURCH TRADITION was also declared to of God and thus to be treated as authoritative and equal to scripture.
The decree pronounced that anyone who “does not accept as sacred and canonical the aforesaid books in their entirety and with all their parts” was to be anathema.[2]
c. Why it is not accepted as Canon (inspired)
i. The books do not meet the standard of inspiration for the Old Testament.
Recall how we noted that for a book to meet the standard of inspiration in Judaism it required the following: 1) Written by a known prophet of God; 2) miraculous or prophetic confirmation; 3) consistent with the overall message of God’s word (cf. Deut. 13:1-3).
NOTE: This is important. The lower your standard is for the word of God, the lower your standard will be for accepting and following it!
ii. Jewish scholars in general REJECTED the apocryphal books as uninspired. In fact, after the destruction of Jerusalem, they sought to destroy them. Consider Romans 3:1-2 which says, “What advantage then has the Jew, or what is the profit of circumcision? Much in every way! Chiefly, because to them was committed the oracles of God.”
iii. To my knowledge none of the apocryphal books claim inspiration as does the rest of the portion of the Old Testament we have. You never find expressions like, “thus says the Lord”, etc. The point being, the authors may have never intended them to be inspired, but passing down traditions, historical accounts, stories, etc.
iv. All of these books were written in Greek, whereas the original Old Testament was written in Hebrew (with small portions in Aramaic). Hebrews was the language of Israel, the writings of Moses and the prophets. Thus these books were out of character with verified inspired O.T. writings.
v. It was not accepted as Canonical until 1546 at the Council of Trent by the Catholic Church along with the traditions. Why so long to formally recognize them?
vi. There is a reason why it was accepted then. The apocrypha justified Catholic practices not found elsewhere in scripture and which were being refuted by the Protestant reformation movement. For example:
1. Prayers for the dead (2 Macc. 12:39-46).
2. Purgatory (2 Mac. 12:43-45)
3. Salvation by alms giving (Ecclesiasticus 3:30, Tobit 12:8-9, 17)
4. The practice of magic spells (Tobit 6:5-8) – a text where instructions are given to keep away evil spirits by making smoke from the heart, liver and gall of a fish.
5. Saints in heaven interceding for those on earth (2 Mac. 15:11-14). Heb. 4:14-16 describes our Lord as our only intercessor.
vii. There are also historical and internal inaccuracies.
viii. FURTHERMORE, the apocrypha is never quoted, nor appealed to by Jesus or the New Testament writers.
ix. When you weigh the evidence for and against, it is clear that the books of the Apocrypha are doubtful at best as to being inspired.

d. Why it is believed by some to be part of the Canon?
i. There are some arguments made to justify the apocrypha. I would like to take a few moments to examine some of these.
ii. Arguments in favor of the apocrypha:
1. Some argue that some passages of the New Testament allude to the Apocryphal writings. For example: Heb. 11:35 speaks of women receiving their children from the dead. 2 Maccabees 7 supposedly gives details of such being fulfilled.
Other passages such as Matt. 7:12, Jas. 1:19, 6, Heb. 1:3, etc. supposedly could be referencing the apocrypha as well.
2. Portions were found in the LXX (Septuagint), the Dead Sea Scrolls, and other early documents.
NOTE: What is the Septuagint? It was the Greek translation of the Old Testament. Its significance is that it is the FIRST example of translation from one language to another of scripture. It was believed to have been translated by around 70 scholars, hence the abbreviation LXX (Roman numeral for 70).
Furthermore, in the day of Jesus and the apostles, they frequently quoted from the Septuagint.
3. Because Jesus and the New Testament quote from the Septuagint, which includes portions of the apocrypha, therefore it is to be accepted.
4. Some of the so-called early church Fathers quoted from some of them.
5. Some of the so-called church fathers accepted the Apocrypha as Canon. In fact, earlier councils of Hippo (393) and Carthage (397) accepted them as Canon under the influence of Augustine.
6. Some early Greek manuscripts included some of the apocryphal books in them.
7. Also, early translations, including the original KJV, included them.
iii. Answering the arguments made in support of the Apocrypha.
1. As to quotes in the New Testament, the possible references are vague and can be appealed to by other passages. There is no direct support such as quotes that appeal to the apocrypha.
2. Found in the LXX (Septuagint). Some of the books are found, but they are later copies of the Septuagint. The copies we have are more than 500 years after it was translated (beginning in the 3rd century BC and completed 132 BC). The apocrypha could have been added to these copies. FURTHERMORE, there is not consistency in which books are in which copies (i.e. they do not all match).
3. As to Jesus and His apostles quoting from the LXX: it is SIGNIFICANT that they NEVER quote or refer to the apocrypha, but they DO appeal to every other part of the Old Testament (cf. Luke 24:44, etc.)
4. Found in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Portions of the apocrypha are found there, but so are a number of other non-inspired works. The significance of the Dead Sea Scrolls will be seen in a later lesson. Let us suffice it to say, that the scholars who preserved these documents copied many things.
5. Quoted by early church leaders – while some quoted from some of these works, many others did not. Furthermore, many of these early church leaders rejected the apocrypha. So the findings are inconclusive.
Furthermore, they quoted from many non-inspired works. Just as I might quote the writings of someone I agree with, but I don’t consider them equal to the Word of God. In fact, their relevance is only useful so far as it agrees with the Word of God.
Also, realize that we KNOW they were NOT inspired men. They were fallible and wrote what would be the equivalent of commentaries or addressing some subject and appealing to various scriptures. We shall see more of their importance in our next lesson.
6. Found in early translations and manuscripts, including the first editions of the KJV. In most instances, they were inserted as a supplement and not as equal to the inspired word of God. Just as we have study Bible and “helps” in the back of some of our reference Bibles, the translators found some of these documents USEFUL, but that is not equivalent to inspired.
Consider this: We have been studying the psalms and frequently reference the superscriptions. We know they are not inspired, but they can be helpful in determining the background of a particular psalm.

And thus we can see that the Old Testament we have IS complete. The apocrypha, while it might be interesting reading and in some instances helpful from a historical standpoint, it is NOT the inspired word of God and should be considered with reservations. Let us resolve to accept ALL of God’s word as well as its boundaries.


Sources: http://watch.pair.com/apocrypha.html
http://www.truthnet.org/Bible-Origins/6_The_Apocrypha_The_Septugint/index.htm
http://www.jesus-is-lord.com/apocryph.htm
http://www.biblebelievers.net/bibleversions/kjcapocr.htm

[1] "apocrypha." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 25 Feb. 2011. <Dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/apocrypha>
[2] The Oxford Annotated Apocrypha, pp. X, XV

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